MedievalStuck
by BreeLeeDee
Summary: A young man stands before his celebrating kingdom. It just so happens that today, the 13th of April in the year 1025, is this young man's birthday. Follow this young man and his friends as the perfect kingdom around them changes to a world where secrets are revealed, friendships are tested, and families are destroyed. Rated M for language.
1. Chapter One

_**Hi, everyone~ So before you start reading, here's a few warnings: First off, a LOT of this story is different from the legitimate Medievalstuck. The language is semi-modern, and this is more of a medieval-feel kind of story. I can't tell you all the pairings that will appear, but I will warn you when we come across them. **_

_**I also want to thank a few friends of mine who inspired this story. Love you guys~**_

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Reader: Enter Prospit

Lively music played all through the townplace. Citizens danced up and down the long roads. Everyone rejoiced and was glad, for this was a day of celebration. The 13th of April marked the thirteenth birthday of the beloved Prince John, heir to the throne of Prospit, the kingdom where our story begins. A strong wind blew, but the bright sun kept the land warm and bright. There couldn't have been a better day to celebrate, and John knew this as he stood on the palace's high balcony that overlooked most of the town. A smile came upon his face, until a voice came from behind him and momentarily startled him.

"Joooohn!" The voice was sudden, but it was also cheerful and familiar, and John's smile returned when he felt his sister's arms wrap tightly around him. "Happy birthday!" she added.

John pulled away from her and laughed. "Thanks, Jade! Oh, you and I are the same age now! You and the others are just so old!"

"I'm only _little_ older than you, silly," Jade reminded him. She leaned over the balcony railing to look at the townspeople below. "Goodness. They don't get this excited for _my_ birthday! But then again, I'm not worth much to them anyway." John wanted to tell her that maybe the festivals on his birthday happened to be better than the ones on hers, but he knew that was just an excuse and she was right. Jade turned back to her brother and grabbed his hands. "You're the next king, John! They _have_ to love you."

John had been dreading this conversation for years; Jade was fine with her brother being heir to the throne, but he found it unfair to her because she was older. And he felt guilty, talking about it like this. "Oh, look!" the princess cried, pointing at the castle's front gate. "They've come home!" Not quite understanding, John leaned over farther and saw a cluster of males entering the front doors. And he caught a glimpse of a boy he knew far too well - one of Prospit's greatest knights and John's best friend, Dave Strider. The two siblings smiled at each other and ran back inside.

By the time they got downstairs to the throne room, most of the knights had begun to disperse to their various places of duty. The royal children stood on either side of their father's empty throne - John on the right and Jade on the left - as they awaited their friend's arrival. But their view was quickly blocked as a young page jumped forward. "Prince," he said, briefly kneeling on the ground, and John gave a subtle nod. "Princess," he added, rising to his feet to bow. Jade curtsied and gave a small laugh. "You're allowed to be informal when Father isn't present, Page," she whispered.

Jake straightened up, then relaxed his shoulders and grinned. "Oh, I can't even begin to tell you about it! Training is great, don't think I believe otherwise, but... Actually getting the chance to march alongside them, set up camp, visit the faraway kingdoms? It was just-just brilliant!" His eyes brightened when he said, "I was even able to sword fight with a few of the high knights."

"For record's sake," a low voice pointed out from the other side of the room, "I let you win." The last knight to enter the castle, Dave closed the heavy doors behind him. John wanted more than anything to run up to his friend and embrace him, but he knew when Dave was upset he wanted to be left alone. And returning from Derse's remains, Dave would no doubt be very upset - even if it was hard to tell since his eyes were hidden by dark glasses, which he wore for reasons to be kept from the Prospitian prince and princess.

"Oh, Dave!" Oblivious to the knight's pain, Jade bounced down the small marble stairs to reach her friend. John gaped at her, then quickly followed behind with an attempt to stop her. "Jade, please don't say anything too-"

"No, no! It's okay!" she replied, glancing at her brother before arriving in front of Dave. "Tell me everything that happened," she insisted. "How was it? Was the journey difficult? Did you run out of supplies? Was there a night raid?"

"Jade, don't-" John didn't want her to say too much too soon, and he knew it was coming. But she continued, "What's the Land of the Exiles like? I've never been there. Were there any Dersite survivors? Did you see the ruins of Derse Castle?"

"Princess." Even through his suffering, Dave could appear unnaturally calm as he held up a hand to silence Jade. "The supplies were fine, and as for the quest, I can tell you that it has been fulfilled. And yes," he answered in a softer voice, "I _did_ see the castle. And it was... enlightening." His head turned in John's direction, and the prince could feel Dave's hidden eyes pleading for an escape from Jade's questions. "Permission to go up to my quarters?"

John nodded with a deep breath. "O-Of course. I mean... Permission granted." Dave nodded back to him and bowed to Jade, then headed down a long corridor that led to the knights' living areas. With Jade muttering "He never calls me Princess" next to him, John turned away to leave the throne room. He looked back, however, to see that Dave had paused in the middle of the hall to give John as much of a smile as one would ever receive from Dave Strider. "And happy birthday, Prince John." John began to reply but his friend walked off before he could speak. Leaving while a member of the royal family was speaking normally led to an arrest or, on extreme terms, a beheading, but John forgave his friend for forgetting the rule. For Dave was too busy being the most emotionally strong young man in the history of any kingdom, in any land, until the end of all days.

Seer: Break the Rules

The young seer stared into the crystal ball on the table before her, focusing on everyone she cared about to make sure nothing alarming was in their near future. Jake English seemed fine for the time being, as did Jane Crocker. Prince John's future was somewhat foggy, and would therefore need further observation at a later time. Her brother Dave was hurting, but that was to be expected upon his return from their homeland. She skipped her brother Dirk and checked on Princess Jade, and her head began to spin as she did so. Her sight went black, and she knew what this meant: an event would occur that could not be prevented, no matter what. The seer could not visualize the event, but the voices spiralling through her head gave some insight. _"We shouldn't have any problems... None at all." "Is this necessary, John?" "My legs... I can't feel my legs..."_

The voices sounded somewhat familiar, but they were so distorted that the seer could not recognize them. Still they kept screaming, louder and louder, and the seer moved her hands from on either side of the crystal ball to her ears in an attempt to drown the voices out. "Stop," she muttered, but to no avail. They got even louder then: _"This wasn't part of the plan-!" "Leave, now! You can't stay here..." "Father! No, please!"_

"Rose!" All at once the voices stopped, and Rose jumped as she felt a hand on her shoulder. Though her sight slowly returned, Rose didn't turn around because she already knew who the voice belonged to: her fellow seer and mentor, Terezi Pyrope. "Rose, I _told_ you not to focus too hard on so many people at once!"

"I did not mean to," Rose replied, eyes plastered on the crystal ball. "You are very aware that I get too engulfed in it sometimes."

Terezi sighed and released Rose's shoulder, then sat next to her on an old wooden chair, much like the ones all around the matching table. "That's why you don't See unless I'm with you! The whole reason I live with you in this shabby shack is to help you control your gift! And I can't do that if you break the rules!"

"I apologize for my curiousity," Rose replied somewhat bitterly. "Now, may we just begin our lesson for today?" Her mentor only crossed her arms stubbornly: "It seems to me you already know what you're doing," Terezi snapped. She ascended to her feet, walking stick in hand to help guide her to the front door, where she stopped and added, "Try not to stay inside all day, Rose. At _least_ go into town for the birthday festival."

"Hmm. Maybe." Terezi scoffed at Rose's terrible response and rolled her red, blind eyes (which were hidden behind a tied red cloth) before she left. Rose watched from the small window until Terezi was out of sight, then forced herself to the broom closet. She grabbed her yellow hooded cloak and pulled it over her head, thinking, _I may as well go out and celebrate John's birthday._

As soon as Rose stepped outside the light hit her face, and she was comforted. She loved how bright Prospit was - a nice change from the dark streets of Derse. Her focus quickly became fixed on Derse all of a sudden as she made her way around the town square. Rose missed her home and often wished she could go back, but that just wasn't possible. Prospit had decided to use Derse Kingdom as a land to send all the exiles. Besides, Dave would never go back anyway. Not since Dirk was killed. It was hard on Roxy, too. It was hard on all three siblings, and they had all done bad things to cope with his death. Dave had become a page, so one day he could reach knight status and hopefully die a hero's death like his brother. Rose had stolen a potion from a mage and attempted suicide. The potion hadn't killed her, obviously; however, it _did_ give Rose magical abilities of her own, and now she was forever cursed to live the life of a seer.

Rose, now walking down one of the town's main roads, suddenly saw a large crowd of people hurriedly leaving one of the bars where her friend happened to work. She was confused at first, but quickly understood when she heard glass shattering from the inside. Which led to how the third sibling coped with Dirk's murder.

Roxy Lalonde had turned to drinking.

Rogue: Cause Trouble

"Roxy—Roxy…"

"Another drink would be _great_—Whoops!" The glass slipped out of the drunken blonde's hand and shattered when it hit the floor. Roxy just giggled as if she were playing her favorite childhood game. She looked back up and leaned one arm on the bar that separated her from her terrified friend, who kept staring at the broken glass. "Oh, Janey," Roxy slurred. "It's only a glass!"

"That's not what I'm worried about," the barmaid Jane replied slowly. "A drinking glass can be replaced when it's been broken."

As more and more men left the bar out of disgust, Roxy waved good-bye to them. She turned back to ask Jane, "Where are they going? Home? Or are they also planning to become knights, so they're going enroll? Lousy idiots!" she called over her shoulder with a laugh. "You know, they're probably going to the festival, the one for the prince. Maybe _this _one can survive past _his _thirteenth birthday!"

Jane sighed. _So that's what this is about: Dirk. _"Roxy, you should go home."

"Oh, all right, Jane. If you _insist_," Roxy surrendered. She jumped off the barstool and took a staggering step forward, causing the glass below her to break even more. She looked down at the ground. "Uh-oh…"

"Dear God." Jane found herself giving in once again. She grabbed a small dish and moved to the other side of the bar, then gently pushed Roxy back onto the stool and knelt in front of her. "I changed my mind. You wait for me. Now let me get this glass picked up."

Roxy did her best to stay still as Jane carefully pulled the glass off the bottoms of her dark boots and put them on the dish, then when the boots were done she began to pick up the bigger shards on the ground. "You're a really good maid, Janey," Roxy admitted. "You always know how to get rid of the mess."

"I've had lots of practice," Jane replied, now sweeping up the leftover shards into the dish. "I clean up after your messes all the time."

Roxy put her hands in her lap and frowned. "Wish I didn't cause so many messes for you to clean up after."

"Me, too," her friend murmured. _Because eventually, you're going to get yourself hurt._ She grabbed the dish full of glass and walked to the door to throw it out, but the door swung open to reveal a hooded Rose. Jane threw her broom to the side and put the glass on a nearby table and hugged her. "Oh, thank goodness you're here! Roxy needs to leave, but I'm not allowed to go yet and she can't walk _or _stay home alone."

Rose let go, closed the door behind her and looked at Jane. "You watch over her whenever this happens, and you live with her to make sure she is constantly all right. I couldn't possibly ask anything more of you."

"There you are, dearest sister," Roxy announced from a few feet away. "Are you here to bring me home? Lock me in my room, tell me to think about what I've done?"

"There would not be much of a point to that," Rose replied. "I highly doubt you'll actually remember any of this." She glanced at the door and gestured for Roxy to come forward. As the drunk slowly walked to them, Jane lowered her voice so only Rose could hear. "Have you seen the posters?" Rose shook her still-covered head, so Jane continued, "A lot of townspeople complained about Roxy's misconduct, so the knights recognized her as a rogue."

"What does being a rogue consist of?" Rose asked. She wasn't completely aware of everything that happened in the town.

"That just means she's on a probation, of sorts," Jane quickly explained, looking down. "Nothing will happen to her as long as she causes no trouble. But if she's turned in a certain number of times" —The maid paused and glanced back up at Rose, her eyes filled with concern— "she can be arrested."

Rose nodded as Roxy reached them. "I suppose that means you and I will have to keep an even _closer _eye on her." Jane shrugged as she took the dish of glass in her hand again, silently agreeing, then opened the door and put it outside next to the other trash. The two sisters followed behind her. Rose reached out and pulled Roxy's dark hood over her hair. "It's very windy today," she said. "I do not want your hair to get ruined."

She also didn't want anyone recognizing Roxy, but Rose kept that to herself.

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**_Oh dear, I'm so bad at writing for Roxy and Jane Dx_**

**_Well, that is all of Chapter One! I know the whole situation with Dirk is confusing now, but it will be explained in the next chapter! Also, John and Jade's father is still in another kingdom with a few other knights. Only a couple of them were sent home, because the situation they're handling isn't very important but the King still has work to do. As for their mother, you'll find out about her later._**

**_Just so you guys have a kind of visual as to what everyone is wearing, John and Jade have their Prospit dreamer outfits on (complete with crowns, of course!), Rose and Roxy have on their god tiers, Jane is dressed as a medieval barmaid, Dave is dressed in armor (obviously), and Jake basically has a white shirt and tan trousers. If you Google "Medievalstuck Terezi," you'll see in one of the first pictures that Terezi has a black and teal dress on with a red cloth tied around her eyes._**

**_So, yeah! I kind of love writing this story too much and it's taken my time away from writing my Hetalia fanfiction (I should probably do that soon...). _**

**_I hope you like it~ Any questions or comments, just Review and I will respond! Thanks for reading this, everyone!_**

**_Bree_**


	2. Chapter Two

Reader: Spot the Ship

The young archer rested against a tree in the forest on the outskirts of Prospit, bow in hand, his horse tied to another tree a few feet away. His hunting day hadn't gone as planned; there was not a single animal out in the open. The hunter had begun to close his eyes when he heard what sounded like the snapping of a twig. Immediately he jumped away from the tree and started looking around, aiming his arrow wherever he turned. Another sound followed, this time a small yelp, and the archer was angry that the sounds' owner stayed hidden. "Come on out!" he called. "You can't get past me anyway, so don't bother trying!"

The sounds grew louder then, and the young troll took his aim as he saw a dark figure among the trees. It didn't reveal itself, so the archer slowly began to release the arrow... But then the figure leaped out and landed directly in front of him, hands up in surrender. "Don't shoot, don't shoot! It's only me!"

Surprised, the archer lost his aim and shot a tree instead. "What—Nepeta!" He stared at his cat-like best friend and wiped a bit of sweat from his forehead. "Are you absolutely crazy? I could have shot you!"

"Well, at least you didn't!" She pounced forward and gave her friend a hug. "I saw you leave town, so I followed you! I thought purr-haps we could have an adventure." Nepeta grinned. "Wouldn't that be fun, Equius?"

_Yes,_ Equius thought, carefully pushing her away, but he said otherwise. "No. Townspeople aren't allowed out here—it's almost past the town line. The only reason I'm allowed out here is because the king granted me this hunting ground. You're a rogue, Nepeta"—As he said this Nepeta looked away—"and you only have two more chances before you get arrested. You cannot _afford_ to sneak away."

Slowly Nepeta's reaction turned from one of guilt to one of confusion. "What purr-pose does someone have for a pirate ship?" It was obvious Equius didn't quite understand, so Nepeta pointed through the trees. "Look!"

He did, and realized that half a mile away was the ocean, which the two could see from their elevated land. In the water was a large pirate ship, and it was making its way to Prospit. "Foreigners," Equius muttered.

And with that, he threw his bow over his shoulder, untied his horse, pulled himself and Nepeta onto it, and rode away to warn the royals.

Pages: Question the Knight

"How many pirates are on the ship?"

"Are they going to be friendly?"

"What land do they come from?"

"Why would they come _here_, of all places—Wow, I'm sure there was a better way to say that..."

"Can you both stop asking those questions?" Dave snapped. "All Zahhak said was he saw a ship, so the prince had a few knights request that the captain comes speak to the king."

Jake blinked. "But the king is still in another kingdom. He's not here."

"_I_ know that," Dave replied, "and _you_ know that, but those _pirates_ don't. They'll talk to Prince John instead. He'll be king one day, anyway. Another knight has already explained to John what he must say. It'll be fine."

"Oh. All right, then," Jake said with a nod. Believing the discussion was over, Dave turned to walk away. But the two curious pages continued to follow him around the castle. "I can't wait to meet them," Jake continued. "It should be so fascinating to hear all about their adventures on the sea!"

Dave never turned around. "You won't be meeting them. During a private meeting, the monarch requires only one guard, and John chose me. So it will only be me, Prince John, and the captain in the throne room. And Nitram here, apparently."

The other page—Tavros Nitram—beamed. "That's great. But, uh... why me?"

Dave finally stopped at the kitchen entrance and looked at the two pages. "You're almost at knight status, Nitram. The last part of your training involves spending three days with a knight—in this case, me. You have to go on any quests with me, follow me around, help me with security at night, things like that. You get it?"

"I-I understand." Tavros nodded furiously. "Thank you."

"Don't thank _me,_" Dave insisted. "Believe me, I didn't sign up for this." He looked at them both and subtly nodded. "Now, I have to go check on the food for John's birthday celebration tomorrow, because apparently I have nothing better to do. Tavros, we'll start your training later. For now, you two can go do... whatever. Just make sure you both stay out of trouble."

The pages swore they'd be good, and when Dave went into the kitchen Jake nudged Tavros' arm. "You are so lucky! I sure do wish I was in your shoes." Tavros simply smiled, unable to say anything that would not be considered selfish.

Only an hour later, Dave called for Tavros to join him in the throne room. When he arrived, John sat on his father's throne and Dave stood on the left, where John normally stood. Tavros quickly took a place to John's left—Jade's usual spot. They all stayed there for a while, backs straight and eyes on the door, until John turned to Dave and broke the silence. "Oh God, Dave. I-I don't know what I'm doing," he whispered. "What if something goes wrong? What if I cause a disagreement? What if—?"

"John, John, John." Usually Dave got annoyed when people asked him so many questions, but he sounded very sincere, which astonished Tavros, who kept his eyes forward but watched Dave kneel out of the corner of his eye. "You'll be fine. You're going to be a great leader one day, and this is an opportunity to prove it. Not to us, but to yourself. It _will_ be okay." He rose to his feet again. "Just be yourself."

John looked like he wanted to speak but couldn't, because the doors of the castle burst open. Nobody looked up—Dave and Tavros were now both staring at John—but they heard the voice of one of the guards: "Miss, only _you_ are allowed in here—"

_Miss?_ The three boys' heads snapped up and they saw a pirate at the front of the room... but it was a girl. A girl _troll_, but trolls (like Terezi, Nepeta, Equius, and Tavros) were common around the kingdoms; female pirates, however, were not. Behind her was a male troll, dressed in a big white shirt and purple slacks, probably the extra guest the guard was referring to. But the pirate looked closely at the guard and responded in a hard voice, "The captain needs her first mate." So the guard nodded and left the room, leaving the prince, knight, and page alone with two pirates, who looked at the throne impatiently.

Dave leaned down and whispered something in John's ear, then John sat up a little straighter and announced, "Come forward." So they did, and John finally got a better look at them. The first mate was the size of a boulder, but it was obvious he was all muscle. His horns shot up from a tangled mess of black hair. Something about his expression confirmed a myth about pirates: they were never sober. John refused to meet his eyes.

He stood a little behind the female, who John assumed was the captain. She was tall and muscular, and her grey skin matched well with the coat she wore. It was a black and blue buttoned-up overcoat that unbuttoned near the bottom to reveal knee-high boots. The matching hat rested on a head of wavy black hair with a set of mismatched horns. Her eyes stayed hidden under her hat when she and her helper bowed. "Your Highness."

Having a foreigner bow to him made John feel excited and powerful, but he tried to act as strict as he could. "Identify yourselves."

The captain nodded to her assistant, eyes still hidden. "That's Makara. Age, nineteen years. My first mate and _left_ hand." She laughed and held up her left arm to explain; instead of skin, her arm was made of metal. John was impressed. In Prospit, when someone lost a limb it was replaced with a wooden one; metal was expensive and rare. Tavros just frowned. There was _no_ possible way this 'Makara' could be nineteen—he had to be the same age as Tavros himself: thirteen.

Makara stood. "King of Prospit, may I present to you, the most successful pirate in history's time, the most feared female to sail these seven seas, the respected captain of the universe's best motherfuckin'"—This would have angered the king, but John let out a laugh—"ship, the Black Widow. Really, is that not the greatest name for a ship _ever_?"

The captain finally lifted her head and flashed John a smile, and the one eye not hidden by an eyepatch seemed to shine. "A pleasure to meet you, your Highness," she said. "My name is Mindfang."

A chill ran down Tavros' spine. But John only grew more interested. "What a neat and powerful name!" he praised. "Can I ask why you and your crew are here?" He laughed over the fact that she was still kneeling. "You may rise, by the way."

She did, and answered John's question. "Well, your Highness, we've been on the water for many months without even a glimpse of land. My dearest Makara here spotted your lovely land, thinking it was just a simple, uncolonized island. But when we arrived and the knights approached us, I saw a prosperous kingdom and decided maybe I could convince the king to let my crew stay a few nights." John must have looked doubtful, because Mindfang pouted. "Please, your Highness. The sea can play terrible tricks on a crew's mind."

Something about that statement humored Tavros and he let out a short laugh. He felt Dave glaring at him so he covered his mouth, but he also saw the pirate captain smirking in his direction. She looked Tavros up and down curiously and winked before she turned away. Tavros told himself it wasn't a wink—she was only blinking and it just looked strange with her eyepatch. But he couldn't be sure.

"Where would you stay?" Dave asked. "Not in the palace—that's too much of a security risk. Not to offend your crew or anything."

Mindfang shook her head. "Of course not! We could sleep on our ship. As long as it's docked, it shouldn't sway as much. We just want to sleep without moving back and forth. That's impossible to do while setting sail."

"Well, all right," John decided. "I don't see the harm. Maybe I could send a few guards to protect your ship while you sleep."

"Oh, no, no, no. That's too much trouble!" Mindfang insisted. "Don't go through so much to protect a band of pirates! We can defend ourselves if the occasion demands it. Thank you for speaking with us, your Highness. We'll leave you now."

Tavros was able to breathe again when he saw the two pirates begin to walk out; something about them felt very strange. But something made John call out, "Wait," and the two turned back again. "There's a ball tomorrow night to celebrate my birthday, which was today. I'd really like it if you both came."

Makara grinned—he obviously loved a good party. So he and Mindfang bowed once more to the prince. "Thank you," she answered, "for the invitation _and_ a place to rest. My crew and I thank you. We shouldn't have any problems..." The captain looked up and seemed to stare at Tavros a moment, but quickly changed her focus to John. "None at all." John welcomed them and Dave walked to the main doors to let them out. As he watched them go, John realzed he had no intention of inviting the pirates to the ball.

So what on earth possessed him to ask them?

Princess: Watch Them Die

That evening, as the sun began to set on Prospit, the prince and princess stood high on the balcony and watched four young women mount the stage that had been rolled into the town square. Each girl's hands were bound behind her back and they were all dressed in brown robes—except one troll, who wore a purple dress. As she stepped onstage, she turned to the castle and seemed to stare right at Jade. The princess shivered. "John. That troll girl wearing purple... Who is she?"

John looked closer and squinted his eyes to see. "Oh. That's Feferi Peixes. She's a Lady—or at least, she _was._ Feferi was a friend of Alternia's prince, back when Alternia still existed. She even survived the attacks on both Alternia_ and _Derse. I guess after losing her friend, Feferi made a deal with the devil. But witches have to pay the price for their crimes, no matter what their class."

"Really?" The witch Feferi was still staring at Jade, not in hatred, but like they both shared a secret. _She knows,_ Jade thought as the executioner slipped a noose around each witch's neck. A priest stepped forward and began to speak about how the devil can manipulate anyone, and these four girls were not strong enough to fight off his advances. Jade held back tears as she asked, "Is this necessary, John?"

"Unfortunately." John grabbed his sister's hand. "Jade, I hate this as much as you do. But there's nothing I can do about it; it's Father's orders. When I become king, I'll do my best to end this. All right?"

"They're just people with unusual abilities! How do we even know a devil is tempting them? That's kind of far-fetched!" The priest had finished his speech and the witches were told to pray aloud as a beg for forgiveness. "We don't execute Seers because they help us with the future, but these witches die!" She was completely sobbing now, unable to take her eyes off Feferi. "It just isn't fair!"

"Jade..." John's grip on her hand tightened as the executioner wrapped his fingers around a rope, the rope that would cause the floor of the stage to open and hang the witches. "Don't look." Jade didn't move, so John pulled her against his chest just as the rope was pulled. The praying stopped. Jade cried some more on her brother's clothes. _She knows. She knew._

Not even tending to her garden could calm Jade down. As she trailed water along the flower beds, she could not get Feferi's face out of her mind. It scared her that someone knew her secret. She wanted to say, "At least Feferi is dead. That way, she can't tell anyone," but Jade couldn't. It was too cruel a thing to think.

Jade put down the watering can and walked over to a large patch of dirt, and when she knelt down the princess gathered the bottom of her yellow dress in one hand, so as to not get it dirty. _I wonder what being hanged feels like,_ Jade couldn't help but wonder as she planted a few pumpkin seeds, a request from Jake. She had so many questions that no one could ever answer: Did the rope scratch their necks? Could you survive a hanging? If so, how painful would it be to just hang there? Did they die immediately, or was there a brief moment when the victim was still alive? Jade shuddered and pat the dirt over the seeds. _I hope I never know..._

_Scratch, scratch, scratch._ "Huh?" The princess turned toward the noise but saw nothing there. She blinked and rubbed her eyes under her glasses, looking at the rosebush across the garden. It looked as if a dark figure was hiding behind the bush, but Jade noticed it didn't move. Perhaps it was a shadow? But then the noise sounded again—_scratch, scratch, scratch_—and Jade jumped to her feet. That was no shadow; it moved when the noise was heard. Something was in the garden, and it was messing with Jade's roses.

"Who's there?" she shouted. There was no reply, only more scratching sounds, so Jade moved a little closer to the rosebush and picked up a small pebble off the ground. "Excuse me! I'm asking you a question!"

A small troll peeked out from behind the bush with a handful of roses—the rogue, Nepeta. Jade grew angry when she saw the troll stealing her flowers, so she threw the pebble right at Nepeta. "Get out of here, rogue!"

_"Meow-ch!"_ Nepeta shrieked. She dropped the roses and scrambled to her feet before running off and leaping over the little stone wall. When she was gone, Jade ran to the rosebush and picked up the torn roses off the ground. "Oh, no," she muttered sadly. She glanced around to make sure nobody was there before she waved her hand over the broken roses and they disappeared. Then she did the same over the rosebush and the flowers re-appeared to where they were before Nepeta picked them, growing larger and more beautiful than ever. Jade leaned down so her lips were right at the flowers as she smiled, whispering, "No one can know."

If only Jade had turned around again, she would have realized not only did the roses know her secret, but Dave Strider did, as well.

* * *

_**Aha, done! Sorry about a bunch of things:**_

_**1. I know John and Dave are completely OOC, but they'll be acting like their normal selves soon enough.**_

_**2. The whole "Alternia and Derse attack" thing is a secret now, but it will be explained in the next chapter!**_

_**3. YES, I KILLED OFF FEFERI BEFORE YOU EVEN GET TO MEET HER, I KNOW I'M A TERRIBLE PERSON AAAH- But it had to happen because it (in lack of a better word) triggered Jade! So yeah!**_

_**God, I have such mixed feelings about this story, I'm not sure I like it yet but I'm trying my hardest!**_

_**Also a few things I want to point out. Make sure you notice two quotes that were said in this chapter: Mindfang saying "We shouldn't have any problems... None at all," and Jade asking "Is this necessary, John?" Sound familiar? If not, go back to Chapter One and read "Seer: Break the Rules" again. **_

_**Also, if the "Mindfang" thing isn't obvious yet, I'm gonna have to slap all of you. XD Just kidding, I love you all too much for that. Sorry about any typos, I'm kind of rushing while typing this and I'm half-asleep. Well, that's it, I guess! Thanks, guys! **_

_**-Bree**_


	3. Chapter Three

**_Hiya guys~  
So I just want to point out something regarding a comment on this story I got: This story does NOT follow the same events as Homestuck. Certain objects don't mean the same thing as they do in Homestuck (such as the ring, which will be in this chapter) and the characters meet in different ways. I'm not trying to be rude, but I just want to point that out to everyone.  
So on that note...  
END OF AUTHOR'S NOTE.  
CHAPTER THREE.  
P.S. Ship warning: Slight DaveJohn _**

* * *

Reader: Examine the Letter

_"My dear John,  
__I am so sorry I cannot make it to the ball tonight. There are a few things I have to do. Important things, I assure you, or else I would not dare miss it. I am sure everybody will have a wonderful time. You will receive your gift the next time our paths cross. Oh... And please have a great (late) birthday._

_Your Faithful Friend,  
__Rose Lalonde."_

John sighed and pushed the letter away from him on his desk. _Rose won't be coming._ He was extremely upset, especially since the two had been such good friends in Alternia. Plus the king wouldn't be arriving until very late, so John had hoped his friends would all be able to attend. At least Dave would be there—even if it was part of his job. Since the Derse attack, Rose and Dave had skipped so many fun activities. It was a shame.

As John glanced at the clock and realized the ball would start in ten minutes, he began to quickly get ready, the whole while wondering what was so important that it made John's birthday a low priority.

Prospitians: Celebrate

"Okay. Okay, everyone? Quiet, please!" Jade giggled as she stood at the front of the dining hall, attempting to get everyone silent. The townspeople before her grew quiet slowly and listened. "Sadly my father is still out of town, so I will read the opening passage to introduce my brother, the prince, the heir!" Loud cheers erupted at this, but stopped in respect for Jade.

And she spoke about the history of Prospit, a kingdom that had sadly been built on the blood of many. She talked of Alternia, the main kingdom where they had all lived—until a murderer killed the royal family and anyone who got in his way. The survivors had escaped to the outlands, where two men—John and Dave's fathers—stepped forwar and said a new kingdom had to be built. John's father had said that the people should move far across the land and form alliances with foreigners in case they were ever attacked again. But Dave's disagreed, deciding the new kingdom should be an isolated place where, starting at a young age, everyone would be trained for war. The crowd took sides and agreed to create two separate kingdoms—one ruled by Dave's family and the other by John's. They would be named Derse and Prospit.

Both lands flourished, until the murderer returned and destroyed Derse, killing many Dersites and half the royal family. The king and queen died, as did Prince Dirk—who had been celebrating his thirteenth birthday. The Prospitian queen fell also, for she had been in Derse on a visit The remaining Dersites fled to Prospit for help, and the killer was never seen again.

As Jade finished the opening, John appeared at the back of the hall and she nodded for him to speak. "Prospit has survived so much," he announced as he began to walk to the front. "We survived Alternia, and then Derse. And as luck would have it, we are still safe to this day." John stopped at the table closest to the front and banged his fist against it. "But enough with this! Tonight, we eat, dance, and celebrate!"

The cheers erupted again and the tables were pushed off to one area to make room for dancing. Jade hugged John quickly and smiled. "That was beautiful!" she whispered.

John held her arms and looked at her dressed in a long black and green gown. "The beauty of my words cannot even _compare_ to the sight before me," he said dramatically. "Why is my sister so terribly gorgeous?"

Jade giggled and winked. "It runs in the family." This was the relationship between the two siblings: constantly joking around while at the same time complimenting each other. But it was true; they both looked wonderful. John wore an expensive blue dress shirt made of silk with white bottoms. And of course his gold crown rested atop his actually-brushed black hair. John had even caught Dave staring a few times—or _was _he even staring? The shades made these things so hard to figure out.

As the night continued on John found himself not in a dancing mood like everyone else; instead he stood off to the side, deep in conversation with the maid, pages, and princess. One of the pages would not stop talking until John stopped him. "Look, Tavros, of course I'm really proud of you, but you've talked of nothing but your promotion all night long."

"I'm sorry, uh, Prince John, but this is really important to me." Tavros smiled. "Just knowing I'm good enough to be a knight gives me so much confidence..."

"We respect that," Jake explained, "but it gets somewhat obnoxious after so long."

"You're just bitter because he got to meet the pirates," Jane told him. Jake bit his lip and nodded. She continued, "Well, now's your chance. Isn't that the captain by the door?"

Sure enough, when the kids all turned towards the door, Makara was there dressed in a white silk shirt, black slacks, and a purple sash across his chest. Behind him was Mindfang, who wore a cerulean blue gown that had a sparkly, strapless top and beads near the top of the skirt that somewhat resembled a spider web. One other thing made her stand out—her black mask, which tied around her head and had only one eyehole. "I'll be back in a moment," John said, excusing himself, and he walked away as his friends complained about Tavros' confidence. When he reached Mindfang, the captain muttered something to Makara and he walked away, then she began to bow to the prince. "Good evening, Your Highne—"

John held up a hand. "_Please_ don't bow. I'm not worth it, and besides I just want everyone to relax tonight." She stood again and he addressed her mask. "Did I accidentally lead you to believe this was a masquerade, or...?"

"No, no," Mindfang quickly answered. "Being on the sea, I never get to attend masquerades, and I love the idea of them." Her lip curled into a sly smirk. "The idea that you can be in the same room as someone—speaking to them, even—and not have a clue who they really are." This would probably sound strange to anyone else, but John was almost intrigued by her oddness. Her strange beliefs were hypnotic... just like her eyes, which John could not stop staring at. "Sorry if I can't stop staring," he apologized, "but your eyes... Why do you always cover that left one?"

Mindfang sighed playfully. "If I allowed you to see both of my eyes, Your Highness, you would never be able to look away."

"Well, it's a shame covering your eye means you have to hide that face." He began to reach out to touch her mask but jerked his hand away suddenly and shook his head. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... I don't know why I just said that."

"Nevertheless, I'm glad you did." Mindfang smiled and John continued to stare at her eyes, and neither noticed that several feet away Dave's blank expression melted into a frown.

Dave: Dance

_A pirate?!_ Of all the guests who showed up to celebrate John's birthday, he was wasting his time with a _pirate_—especially one Dave didn't trust as far as he could throw her. Dave knew he'd been distant lately, but he'd hoped to speak with John that night, to give him his gift, maybe even be comforted. But now those plans were crushed, and it was all thanks to a no-good, lousy pirate.

How could he get John's attention? The possibilities were endless, but would any of them work? The musicians began to play a simple dance, so without realizing it Dave walked up to Jade, took her hand, and asked for a dance. The girl, of course, agreed. He took her out to the middle of the floor among others dancing and bowed. She curtsied in response, and when he held her waist she asked, "David Strider. To what do I owe the honor?"

"I beg your pardon, dear Princess. Is it wrong to want to dance with my best friend?" the knight replied.

"Absolutely not, but your best friend is over there talking to the pirate." Dave sighed and looked into Jade's emerald eyes. She knew him far too well; it had always been that way. Even back in Alternia. Any secret he attempted to hide from Jade, she always found out in the end. And the same worked the other way around, since hopefully Dave was the only one who knew about Jade and her... _abilities._ "Stop trying to make my brother jealous."

Dave looked at the ground briefly, then raised his head and smirked. "Is it working?" He twirled Jade so she could see John behind her an she smiled when she turned to him again. "A little, because the pirate is gone and he's now staring at us."

This made the knight a little happier. "Come on, Princess," he whispered in Jade's ear. "Let's put on a show." He dipped her there in front of everyone and she giggled, and when Dave glanced up sure enough John was standing there alone, staring. He pulled Jade back up and mouthed _Thank you_ to her, and the two continued to dance. Until Dave felt someone poking his shoulder. "Um, Dave...?"

Dave groaned and looked behind him, never letting go of the princess. "Nitram, _what_ do you want?"

"We've, uh, got a little problem." Tavros leaned closer to whisper, "I heard a highly suspicious noise coming from upstairs."

"It's probably the king," Dave replied. "He's returning home tonight, and if he's here now he most likely went upstairs to get ready for the ball. But if you're _so_ worried about it, go and check. Just leave me alone. I'm dancing, here."

The page glanced at Jade and waved, smiling sheepishly. "Can I dance with her?"

"Okay. Tavros." Dave let go of Jade and turned to face him. "Do you want to dance with the princess or go check out the irrelevant noise? Don't answer; listen. You just cut into my dancing time, so be reasonable and go check out the fucking irrelevant noise."

"O-Oh. Uh, all right." Tavros smiled at both of them before running out of the hall to tend to his "knight" duties.

"Why are you so mean to him?" Jade asked when Tavros was gone and Dave began to dance again.

Dave shrugged. "He's a pain in the ass."

"_You're_ a pain in the ass!"

"Thank you," the knight responded, as he twirled Jade once again.

Rose: See

_"This wasn't part of the plan—!" "Is this necessary, John?"_

"Oh, come on," Rose begged to the crystal ball, which had finally begun to show her snippets of the visions she had heard the day before. The images were blurry, the voices distorted, and Rose's head was screaming painfully. Sweat clinged to her messy blond hair and tears fell from her bloodshot eyes, sleep-deprived eyes. It wasn't Jade's future anymore that Rose had checked on; it was John's, and when the Seer realized the siblings' futures held the same warning she felt obligated to See it.

Rose focused even harder, not caring what Terezi would do when she found out Rose had broken the rules yet again, and as blood began to drip from her nose she knew it was working. It just _had_ to work. The images became clearer but moved around quickly, like a film on fast-forward, and they were out of order. _"We shouldn't have any problems... None at all." "This wasn't part of the plan—!" _Rose could not see who said this, and the voices weren't even vaguely familiar. Then she saw John, eyes filled with tears: _"Leave, now! You can't stay here..."_ Rose bit her lip. "Oh, John..." Though her physical pain was extreme, his mental and emotional pain seemed far worse. _"Is this necessary, John?"_ And then there was John and Jade, standing on their balcony the day before during the public witch executions. _"My legs..."_ Rose tried her hardest to recognize the eyes that stared through the crystal ball but couldn't. _"I can't feel my legs..."_

Soon her head was pounding and she closed her eyes to stop the visions, but the words stayed in her mind as the pain grew even more: _"Father! No, please!"_ It was John's voice, yet again.

"No!" Rose cried out. The pain stopped abruptly and her head jerked forward, and when she found the strength to open her eyes the crystal ball changed. It became dark as night, and white cursive letters began to spell out cloudy words. The Seer panted as she read them:

_**"Darkness will fall over the Castle of**** Light."**_

The Castle of Light. Bright, cheerful Propsit Castle. Rose gasped and jumped to her feet, and snatched her hood off a chair as she ran out the door. It seemed Rose Lalonde would make it to the party, after all.

Pirates: Be the Thieves

"Heh. Heh-heh." Makara couldn't help but laugh to himself as she shoved expensive silverware from the castle kitchen into his leather sack. They did it. They had pulled off their biggest con yet: convincing the Prospitian king to allow them access to the castle. Mindfang had been right. Speaking of his partner in crime, Makara heard her voice behind him: "Gamzee! Where the hell have you been?" Makara—Gamzee Makara, that is—jumped before he spun around to face the somewhat-angry female. "I've been looking for you _forever_!"

Gamzee took in the sight of Mindfang's new clothes. "But you still found time to change?" Her (stolen) gown was gone; she was now wearing orange leather shorts and a ripped top with a matching hood, and her signature black leather boots. Her eyepatch was back on, too. "Looks good, cap'n!"

"You don't have to call me that anymore," Mindfang groaned. "We're done being pirates. We pulled it off. Now, you head to the king's room and grab what you can. I'll go find the princess', since she's bound to have jewelry. We meet up at the ship at before midnight, and once the clock strikes we're out of here. Got it?"

"Sounds good, Fang." Gamzee gave her a thumbs-up as he ducked out of the room. Mindfang hung around the kitchen a bit longer, throwing a few goblets into her bag for good measure, before she turned to leave and darted up the stairs. It was easy to find Princess Jade's room; the thief had "convinced" John to tell her where it was. The door wasn't even locked—stupid girl. Mindfang pulled a couple of dresses out the wardrobe that she could find use for in the future and then saw the jewelry box, which held dozens of jewels when the thief opened it. She dumped the contents into her bag, then figured the box itself was probably worth a good bit and stuffed it in, too. After everything of value was in her posession she left the room, but another door caught her eye as she walked past. _Whose room is this?_ Mindfang wondered as she entered it. _It's far too nice to be a guest bedroom._ That much was true; it was the prince's room, but Mindfang was still under the impression that John was the king and therefore didn't know there was a prince.

There didn't seem to be much of value at first glance—except one object that glistened on John's desk. Mindfang crept closer and examined the gold ring. It was pure gold, and was probably worth more than all the objects in her bag _and_ Gamzee's, _combined._ Mindfang was so intrigued by the ring that she didn't even hear someone else enter the room: "Uh, what are you doing in Prince John's room?" The thief whirled around to see the young page Tavros standing at the door, and his eyes grew wide when he saw her. "Captain?"

"Did you say _Prince_ John?" Mindfang frowned, but then let out a small laugh. "Oh, what a surprise."

Suddenly Tavros remembered what Dave had told him in the throne room: _They'll talk to Prince John instead._ "Oh, uh, that was supposed to be a secret... But that doesn't matter. Why are you in here?" He then saw what the thief was holding. "Is that... John's ring?" When Mindfang simply clutched the ring tighter, Tavros added, "'Mindfang' isn't your real name, is it? What's your, uh, real name?"

"Vriska Serket," she answered, looking intently into the page's eyes, "but you're not going to tell anyone that."

_That sounds familiar._ "Okay. Vriska?" Tavros tried not to make any sudden movements, so as to hopefully calm her down. "I, uh, really don't want you to get executed for this, plus we kind of need that ring so the king can publically give it to John when he becomes king one day. So how about you, uh, put the ring _and_ bag down, and I can call for the guards and youc an get only one night in the dungeon?"

"Fine. Call for the knights." Vriska smirked and tossed the bag to the ground, carefully placing the ring on top. "It's not like you can capture me on your own, little page." Tavros took a deep breath—he wasn't going to let her get him angry—and, all the while keeping an eye on her, backed up into the hall corridor. He looked away for a brief second when he saw a shadow move out of the corner of his eye. "Dave, is that—WHOA!"

Vriska had run forward and snatched her treasures up, then bolted out the room and knocked Tavros over in the process. She ran out the corridor into the main hall, which was at the top of the staircase. Tavros could see her hook the ring and bag to a clasp on her snakeskin belt, and maybe that's what gave him the courage to get back up and run after her. Vriska didn't make it far; she only reached the top of the stairs before Tavros grabbed her leg and made her fall to the ground. Vriska kicked at him as he tried to snatch her belt. "Get _off_ of me, moron!"

"Give me the ring!" Tavros replied. When the thief didn's surrender he pinned her down, but she was able to turn herself around to go face-to-face with her opponent. Tavros struggled to grab the ring, and Vriska even attempted to bite him. He went to cover her mouth but accidentally tore off her eyepatch in one quick movement, and the page saw why she wore it in the first place.

Vriska's left eye had not one, but _seven_ pupils.

Tavros' grasp on her weakened in shock, but the troll beneath him just smiled and tilted her head to one side. "Do you hear that, loser? That faint music coming from the party?" He _did_ hear it, but said nothing. "That song is for a dance called the Tarantella. The dance is so complex and long that townspeople do it to sweat tarantula venom out of their system."

_What is she talking about?_ Tavros scrambled to his feet and Vriska jumped up also, and began circling him like prey. "Who, uh, are you, Vriska?..._What_ are you?"

Suddenly Vriska pushed him against the railing at the top of the stairs and stared him down, and although he fought back she was stronger than him and didn't budge. Her smile melted into a dark smirk. "I am your worst nightmare."

"Tavros!" a familiar, high-pitched voice called from nearby. Rose had warned John, Jade, and Dave that someone was in the castle, so they got nervous and went on a search to find Tavros. He looked away from Vriska at the sound of his name and she knew his guard was down, so Vriska used all of her strength to push the page over the railing. He hit the ground several feet below, and Vriska heard the sickening crack. She panicked and ran back into John's room, since it was connected to the balcony—an easy escape. She climbed out onto it just as Gamzee darted into the room and saw her. "Did you push Tavros?" he asked, surprisingly serious. The two knew Tavros; he just didn't remember them. "Wait. This wasn't part of the plan—!"

Vriska shrugged and threw her sack over her shoulder. "Sorry, Gamz. I hope they kill you quickly, put you out of your misery." And with a wink, the thief began to climb down the castle wall into darkness, never to be seen again.

Royal Family: Fall Apart

"Dave, what _exactly _did Rose See?"

"He told us what she Saw: someone is in the castle. Tavros!" Jade cupped her hands around her mouth to make her voice carry when she yelled his name again. "I just hope he's okay." The three kids reached the main staircase and saw a large figure looming over a body that was lying on the ground. As both royal kids gasped, Dave approached the figure and reached for his sword. "You! Face me and stay still!"

The figure turned slowly to look at the three and held up his hands in surrender. It was Gamzee, and John noticed the look in his eyes was pure fear and shock. "Before you say anything, know that this was _not_ my doing..." The kids didn't quite understand, until they recognized the face of the body behind him. Dave ran forward and tried to wake Tavros up, and Jade fell to her knees next to the page and gripped his hand. The prince, shocked as well, just slowly walked up to the "pirate" and asked, "Who are you, _really_?"

He sighed. "Gamzee Makara. Age, thirteen years. Professional con artist, and survivor of Alternia. I'm not a pirate, just a troll who teamed up with a thief in order to get the things we want but could never have. She and I, along with a few others, stayed in Alternia after the attack out of fear that we'd be killed if the murderer caught us escaping. But eventually, we left and found Prospit. The ship you saw belonged to real pirates, but the thief and I... killed them and took their ship and belongings."

"A thief." John gaped at him. "That was—"

"Captain Mindfang." The voice was quieter than usual, and weak, but Tavros forced the words out. All eyes fell on him as he managed to open his. Jade collapsed against his chest for a hug. The page hugged back with one arm, but used the other to reach in his pocket and hold out the shiny object in John's direction. "She took a lot of stuff, but I was, uh, able to get your ring back..."

John could only stare back for a few moments, before he took the ring. He never liked Tavros and often made that very clear, yet the page risked everything to get John's ring back. He felt so guilty. A simple page was braver than every knight—perhaps excluding Dave—he would ever encounter.

"Yeah, that's her," Gamzee admitted. "But she isn't a real captain and I doubt 'Mindfang' is her real name. It sounds fake as motherfuckin' shit, and she isn't the type that would tell just _anyone_ her name."

_She told me,_ Tavros thought. _Vriska Serket._ But when he opened his mouth to tell them her name, he couldn't. No, the words that came out instead were _very_ different. "My legs..." Everyone's attention once again fell on him, and Tavros stared down at nothing in particular. "I can't feel my legs..."

Dave frantically looked around in hope of finding some help. Jade buried her face in her hands and silently cried. Gamzee was the only one who stayed completely still. John pulled Dave to the side and told him, "Go back to the party. Find a doctor. There's bound to be one somewhere. Find one and bring him back here. But don't show any sign of panic."

The knight nodded and knelt next to Tavros, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You're going to be okay, Nitram."

Tavros stared up at him blankly. "I'm never going to become a knight like you."

Dave knew that was the truth, but he took a deep breath and replied, "No, you're not. You're going to become an even _better_ one than me." He gave the troll's shoulder a gentle squeeze and quickly started to head back to the hall, but stopped abruptly when he heard the female voice saying, "Tavros, please don't be scared." _Oh, no._ He only stared in the other direction as Tavros replied, "Princess, uh, I'm not scared of a doctor."

"Not of the doctor." Jade shook her head, now looking up at the page. "I don't want you to be scared of _me_." It became so clear to Dave what she was about to do, the dangerous secret she would reveal. He took a step backward, but didn't turn around. "Jade. Stop."

The girl looked at her friend, not surprised that he knew—after all, they had no secrets, remember? "I have to, Dave," she said with tears in her eyes. "It's... It's the right thing to do." She turned her back on him then and took a deep breath before begging Tavros, "Just please, _don't _be scared of me afterward."

That's when Dave's head snapped in their direction and his shades fell to the ground—revealing _red eyes_, but no one was paying attention to him. "Jade, don't—!" But it was too late. The princess closed her eyes and held a hand out palm-up, and a bright gold cloud of dust appeared there. All was completely silent as she hovered her hand a few inches about each of Tavros' legs, sprinkling the dust on them. The legs glowed for a moment, but then Jade rested her hand on his knee and it stopped, and the dust seemed to melt into his legs. She opened her eyes and awaited a response.

No one talked. Not for awhile. Dave's hands were clenched into fists at his side. Gamzee and John did not move. Tavros was just as shocked as the rest of them, but he carefully sat up and tried to move his leg. It kicked, and though he was surprised he smiled at his healer. "Thank you so much... I can, uh, feel them again."

Jade threw herself against him once more and laughed as they both fell back to the ground. "I am so glad it worked!" she cried, hugging him tightly. "I never got the chance to try it before!" But the happiness could not last long. "Jade?" The girl held her breath and glanced at her brother, who unfortunately looked like he didn't even recognize her. She kept her head rested against Tavros' chest like before. "John, you're not... _afraid_, are you...?"

The prince didn't answer. He hadn't heard her question. He couldn't hear anything over the sound of his heard pounding in his ears. Instead, John said the words all of them knew but didn't dare to say aloud: "My sister's a witch."


End file.
